Dead and the Damned
by catnip513
Summary: When an attack on Beacon Academy is successful, the lives of a few individuals are changed forever. Watch from the perspectives of the members of team RWBY and team JNPR and other characters as they struggle to survive through the day. WARNING: Multiple character deaths, possible character traumatization, possible character insanity and violence.
1. Yang Xiao Long

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

Author's Note: Reviews and comments on how to further improve are appreciated. There will be no yaoi nor will there be any lemons. Enjoy.

-Yang Xiao Long-

Pain.

It was the first thing that Yang knew as she woke up. Blurred images greeted her vision and the blonde blinked twice before getting to her feet, wincing in pain as she did so. Clutching her side, she looked around in an attempt to get a bearing of her surroundings. She was in the amphitheater ... or what's left of it. A large part of the building was gone and was nothing more than piles of rubble that were strewn all around her. There was no one else here besides her.

Groaning, she put a hand on her forehead as she tried to get a hold of her thoughts.

What happened?

It took a while before she was able to pierce back the past few events.

She had been woken up by her sister in the middle of the night.

It had been urgent; Beacon academy was being attacked by a massive horde of Grimm. How it was possible for the creatures to be able to bypass the academy's defenses without being noticed she did not know. Ruby had only known about the attack because she had been unable to sleep and had decided to take a walk around the academy when she had seen them outside at the courtyard from the windows. Within minutes, the entire team had geared up and had immediately moved out to engage the Grimm.

They had been the first team to have reacted to the threat; the others had either milled about in confusion or were still getting themselves prepared.

Things from there had taken a turn for the worse.

There had been so many Grimm and just the four of them.

Despite fighting to the best of their abilities, there was only so much that they could do. They had been quickly pushed back by the overwhelming numbers. Somewhere along the way, Ruby had disappeared from the team's sight. Her sister had been the only one who had refused to give ground, unaware that she was becoming further apart from the rest of the team and allowing herself to get surrounded. Yang remembered launching herself at the swarm of creatures at that, shouting her sister's name as she punched the Grimm left and right whilst ignoring the cries of her two friends.

Something had hit her and sent her flying.

Then came the pain and everything had went black.

Making her way out of the destroyed amphitheater, Yang was greeted with a horrifying sight. The evidence of destruction was everywhere. The bodies of her fellow hunters and huntresses and the Grimm were all strewn across the courtyard.

How long had she been out?

The sky to the east was already paling while the one to the west was still dark.

Yang thought that she could hear distant sounds of fighting not far from where she was.

Was the fight against the Grimm still ongoing?

What about her friends?

What about Ruby?

As Yang walked past the scene of destruction, she kept an eye out for her sister or her teammates. For every dead hunter or huntress that she saw, the anxiousness within her grew. She needed to find anyone from her team fast.

She caught something from the corner of her eye and turned to look at it.

The blonde's eyes widened in shock.

"Ruby!" she shouted as she ran to her sister. Said girl had her lower half trapped under a concrete block. Her cloak was shredded to pieces and claw wounds marked her upper body and face which were caked in blood. Her eyes were closed and she was motionless. Yang tried to lift the block aside to no avail. Gritting her teeth in frustration, her eyes turned red as she activated her aura and with a snarl, she cast the block aside.

"Sis, can you hear me?" she said as she held her sister in her arms. "Sis, say something!"

She felt a flicker of hope when Ruby suddenly coughed.

"Yang ... is that you?" the younger girl muttered weakly.

"Ruby, oh thank god," Yang said in relief.

"Sis, what's going on?" her sister asked as she slowly opened her eyes. "It's so dark ... I-I can't see anything."

The blonde gasped as she saw what had happened to her sister. "Ruby, y-your ey-" She forced herself to shut up.

"Yang?"

Yang did not know how to answer. In the end, she held her sister close to her. "It's nothing Ruby. You're exhausted, that's all. But don't worry, everything is going to be fine. You're safe now." Her eyes were moist and Yang rubbed them as she tried to speak in a soft and reassuring tone.

"Where's Weiss and Blake? ... are they alright?"

Yang bit her lips as she carefully considered her answer. "They're okay Ruby - we all are. They're with the others searching the place for any remaining Grimm. The battle's over but there's still a couple of them around." She smiled and gently brushed her sister's hair. Inwardly, Yang cursed herself. She hated lying. She had promised herself years ago that she would never do that especially when it came to anyone in her family. She had done what she thought was best for Ruby in this case but that did not deny the fact that she had just lied to her own sister.

The brown-haired girl became relaxed. "That's ... great. I was-"

She began to cough violently and droplets of blood splattered all over Yang's clothes.

"Ruby!"

"It's alri-" Another cough.

"Don't talk, rest."

"But-"

"No buts," Yang commanded in that forceful tone which she had not used in a long time. "You have done enough. Save your strength, I'm going to get you some help." She carried her sister in her arms who was rather light and headed in the direction of infirmary. It did not occur to her that she could be right about a few Grimm being about. Or that the infirmary could have been destroyed or that she might not find anyone there. A single thought dominated her head and it was of Ruby and the need to get her treated. It seemed to take forever to reach the infirmary. Each step she took felt as though they had done nothing.

The wheezing that came from her sister made Yang desperate, reminding her that time was running out.

It was an eternity before the building came into sight.

"We're almost there Ruby, just stay with me."

"I'm sorry sis," the badly wounded girl muttered. "I shouldn't have-"

"This isn't your fault," Yang replied. "You have nothing to blame yourself for. You hear me? Don't you dare tell me otherwise."

So focused was Yang on reaching the infirmary, the older girl failed to notice a small open crack on the pavement and tripped. Yang's eyes went wide with horror as she accidentally let go of her sister as she fell. She uttered a yelp as she landed hard on the ground. Ignoring the twinge, her head darted up at where Ruby was. Her sister's breathing was becoming slower and slower. She crawled over to Ruby and quickly turned her body over.

"Ruby! Speak to me!" she cried.

"Yang." Ruby's eyes were closed, her voice was nothing more than a whisper now and blood frothed from her lips as she spoke. "... I love you sis."

"I love you too," Yang said. Her arms trembled. "Please, don't die," she begged, hugging Ruby harder than ever.

She heard her sister breathed her last breath before going limp in her arms.

Yang bursted in tears.

She remembered playing with Ruby outside their home in the summer when they were just small kids. How Ruby had tried to mimic her fighting style when she had yet to be taught by their dear uncle and failing miserably at it. They had went through many dangers together and now she was here with her sister one last time, embracing her in a final hug.

Yang did not know how long she had remained with her sister but eventually, she laid her sister down on the ground.

She stared at her sister for a while before looking at the academy.

Cold fury seized the blonde and she raced towards the building.

* * *

-Author's Note-

Yang's chapter is complete.

This is an experimental fanfic where I am trying to test a certain writing style.

I am also trying to test my ability in writing dark fanfics.

So please review this chapter and tell me what you think of this.

Was I able to achieve my goal? Is there a lack of description or emotion in my writing? Is this chapter dark or emotional in any way?

I had originally planned to write this fanfic to contain the same grim and dark atmosphere as the one in Metro 2033. However, I came across a roadblock and after several hours, decided to make some adjustments to my goals. To those whom I had talked to about my fanfic, I wished to apologize for this change.

In this fanfic, each chapter will be told from a different RWBY character's point of view. The next one will be from Jaune's P.O.V.

If there is anything that you readers feel that you do not like about the way this fanfic is being written or have any questions to ask, feel free to mention them in your reviews.

Thank you for your reviews and for reading this story.


	2. Jaune Arc

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

Author's Note: Reviews and comments on how to further improve are appreciated. There will be no yaoi nor will there be any lemons. Enjoy.

-Jaune Arc-

"Someone help get this to the front entrance."

"I'm on it."

"Does anyone have any bandages?"

"I'm don't know. Check the back - there should be a roll of them there."

Jaune ignored them all.

The leader of team JNPR sat alone at the far corner of the ballroom, his head downcast as he wallowed in regret. The blonde did not show the slightest interest in the chaos around him. He did not notice his fellow students stumbling back from a recent battle and collapsing in exhaustion. He paid little thought to the moans of the wounded and dying, the shouting of orders or the sobbing and crying. He was barely cognizant of the stench of blood.

The hunter only raised his head and opened his eyes blearily when he heard someone mentioned a familiar name.

It was one of the staff members. The man was limping when he entered the ballroom and spoke loudly to capture everyone's attention.

"Miss Glynda and those at the eastern hallway are barely holding up. We need anyone here who is capable of fighting to head over there immediately."

He watched as a few people here and there, both uninjured and lightly wounded got up and grabbed their weapons before going off to the mentioned area. He contemplated joining them but shot down the idea as soon as it came to his mind.

Jaune was nothing like his fellow hunters and huntresses.

He would only create problems for others if he followed them.

A liability - that was what he had been from the very day he had set foot here.

* * *

-Two hours ago-

'Dammit, why can't it just die!?' Jaune thought, his panic growing with every second.

He stabbed and hacked the beowolf in front of him over and over but the creature refused to fall for some unexplainable reason.

"Jaune, it's already dead."

'Wait what?' He blinked his eyes and realized that Pyrrha was right; the beowolf was long dead. There had been too many of its brethrens' corpses tightly packed around in the hallway for the creature to drop. He pulled his sword out of the dead beowolf and stared at the bloody results of his work. "I didn't realize that ..."

"It's alright; things like this happen to us sometimes."

"That was the last of them," Ren stated as Nora dispatched the last remaining Grimm. "Looks like we're safe for now."

"Is everyone alright?" Jaune asked.

Hearing confirmations only from his team, Jaune looked around and his heart sank at what he saw. "Are we the only ones to have made it here?" He was sure that there had been several people with them when they had retreated into this part of the academy.

"I don't know. It's hard to tell whether there was anyone with us with all the chaos," Pyrrha said grimly.

When they had all gotten themselves ready, everyone had charged out of the academy to meet the invading Grimm at the courtyard. It wasn't long before Jaune had come to realize how it had been a foolish move. For all their skill and prowess, the Grimm still had a numerical advantage and it showed on the open battlefield. Students and teachers had found themselves surrounded and separated into pockets of resistance where each pocket would be slowly crushed one by one under the relentless assault of the Grimm.

The teenager shuddered as he remembered the cries of the stranded hunters and huntresses – screaming for help as they were torn to pieces by the black creatures. It was the first time he had seen the Grimm fight in such a coordinated manner.

Panic and confusion had wormed their way into everyone's mind as the situation had continued to deteriorate and when they had heard the call to fall back, what was supposed to be an organized retreat back into the academy had instead turned into a rout.

Everyone had clambered over one another in their desperate attempts to get away from the horde, seeking refuge anywhere they could from the Grimm.

Jaune himself had been knocked down to the ground by a student and would have been in serious trouble had it not been for Pyrrha who had yanked him out from the fleeing students and teachers where they had then rejoined with Ren and Nora and made their way back into the academy. Here, a group of Grimm had caught up with them and the entire team was forced to make their stand.

The battle had been in their favour this time however as the narrow hallways made it impossible for the enemy to utilize their advantage.

"In any case, we need to get to the ballroom. Headmaster Ozpin and the others would be expecting us to be there by now," Ren said.

With that, the team got moving with Ren and Nora at the front and Jaune and Pyrrha following behind. When Jaune was sure that his teammates weren't looking, he looked down at his hands which were shaking. Never before had he ever felt so scared and helpless in his entire life. There had been several close calls during the battle and he recalled how he could have been dead in a few of them if it wasn't for his teammates.

"Jaune? Is something troubling you?"

He jumped when he heard the voice and he turned to see Pyrrha looking at him worriedly.

"Huh? Oh, it's okay Pyrrha, I'm fine." He tried to sound confident and failed miserably.

"You're hands - are you hurt?"

"No no, I'm not hurt or anything. It's nothing to be worried about."

"Jaune please, you can tell me what's wrong."

Jaune paused, wondering whether he should reveal to Pyrrha that he was shaken by the disaster that had befallen the academy. He glanced at Ren and Nora who were getting further apart from the both of them before sighing. "With everything that has happened ... I guess you can say that things had gotten me shaken up. After all the training we've done together, I've barely improved and did so little back there. At times, I actually thought that I wasn't going to make it out alive and that probably would have been the case if you guys didn't help me out. Huh, I can't believe that I'm not bucking up even with a crisis about."

He looked away, not wanting to see how his friend was going to react.

He was surprised when she suddenly stood in front of him and held his hands, squeezing them reassuringly. "Jaune, there's nothing for you to be feeling down about. You did pretty well if you asked me."

"You really think so?" he asked.

A part of him was hesitant to believe her words.

Pyrrha nodded. "You fought decently back there and you kept your cool unlike the other students. You were quick to make the right decisions for the team and you've kept us all together the entire time. Don't dwell on your mistakes - you're doing better than what you think."

His hands slowly ceased to shake and a strange sense of calmness descended on him.

Jaune did not know why but he was touched by what she thought of him.

"Thanks Pyrrha," he whispered.

The red-haired girl smiled. "You're welcome. Come on, we better catch up with those two."

The two students quickened their pace to close the distance with their teammates.

* * *

Jaune drove his sword into the beowolf's neck and blood bubbled up from its wound. Kicking the Grimm away, he had just enough time to raise his shield to block an incoming strike from another beowolf. The power of the blow was immense and there was a loud clang that numbed his arm. The creature bellowed as it swiped its claws at him again in a vicious arc, sending the teenager staggering backwards. There was a third blow and a fourth one before Jaune leaned back to avoid the swipe and then cut in fast, slashing the creature's arm off. The Grimm stumbled and it's life was ended with a sword through its stomach.

Wiping the sweat off his forehead and heaving air into his leaden lungs, he took the opportunity to anaylze the situation.

They cannot keep it up like this.

His team was doing their best to cut their way through the teeming mass of Grimm that had come into the academy through other ways but the odds were stacked heavily against them. For every Grimm they had cut down, two would take its place. It was a miracle that no one had yet to be injured but that could change anytime. They were beginning to tire out and would slip up sooner or later.

'No, I can't give up. Not when we're so close.'

Jaune threw himself at the Grimm with renewed determination. The ballroom was around the corner; they only need to keep going moving at a steady pace and they would surely get to safety in no time. Just a bit more and-

A young Death Stalker (a.k.a smaller version) lashed at him with its stinger and Jaune noticed it at the last minute. He twisted away from the attack and the stinger pierced his side painfully but not fatally. He cried out in pain and dropped to one knee.

"Jaune!"

The scorpion reared its stinger once more, preparing to finish its prey but was crushed by Nora's Magnhild.

"Jaune, are you alright?" he heard Pyrrha say.

Jaune tried to say something but could not. His head was spinning, his vision was blurry. Activating his aura, he felt his wound closed and tried to stand but his legs felt weak and he fell back to the ground.

"What's ... him?"

"I think ... poisoned ... going to ... him ... cover me ..."

He felt someone put his arm around his or her neck and lift him up. They started walking and Jaune wasn't sure how long they did so.

He had entered some sort of numbness that left his mind free to drift.

_Everything felt distant to him ..._

_He couldn't feel his body ..._

_The world was becoming dark ..._

_His heart was beating slower and slower ..._

_He was going to die._

Someone shouted his name. He gasped, drew breath, felt traces of life returning to his mind. His vision cleared.

It was Pyrrha who was helping him to walk.

"Jaune, can you hear me?"

"W-what happened?"

"You were poisoned. Your aura must have had cleared it all out."

Jaune shook his head, unable to believe that he was alive. That had been a really close call.

There was a loud roar behind him and Jaune realized that they were all moving at a very slow pace.

They weren't going to make it, not with them forced to support him.

"... leave me."

Pyrrha gave him a horrified look. "What?"

"Leave me. I'm only slowing you guys down."

"Have you gone crazy!? We're not going to leave you!" Nora shouted from behind before a few grenade shots followed by explosions were heard.

"I'm being a burden to you guys now. You all won't make it to the ballroom at this rate," Jaune argued, his voice trembling.

"We are going to make it," Ren said as he ducked under an Ursa's attack and slashed its legs. "And no one in our team is going to be left behind."

"Please guys, save yourselves while you can. There's no hope for me."

"No, we are not going to do that!"

"Don't-"

"Why are you saying this Jaune!?," Pyrrha suddenly snapped. There were tears in her eyes. "You're not a burden to us - you never were. You're our leader and friend and there's no reason for you to be thinking like this."

Jaune was shocked. He had never seen her like this. "But-"

She gestured ahead. "Look, we're almost there!"

He looked at where she was pointing and was surprised. Just up ahead was the ballroom itself. He could see team CRDL fighting the Grimm, keeping the entrance safe from the creatures. Headmaster Ozpin himself was there too, shouting for them to hurry. "Don't you see? We've did it Jaune. We're going to make it out of this alive together."

Jaune did not say anything. He stared at the sight in disbelief.

Then, he smiled.

The blonde was about to apologize for having that foolish thought of his when he suddenly felt his hair stand up on the back of his neck.

Something was wrong - he could feel it.

It was then that he noticed something on the ground and his eyes widened.

There was a bright glowing circle of energy beneath them.

Jaune tried to shout out a warning when the circle exploded in flames and his world was turned upside down.

* * *

Team JNPR.

His team - Ren, Nora, Pyrrha.

They were all gone.

Killed by that woman in red.

Which he had caused to happen.

They had tried to help him and as a result got killed. If he had stayed focused and not get stung by that scorpion, if he had learned how to use his healing aura more effectively and recovered faster, his team would have not been forced to slow down to help him. They could have made it to the ballroom safely or even avoid that attack as they would not have been distracted by the task of protecting him.

But he did not do any of that.

No, he had instead chose to stay as the worthless trash he was all the way until it was too late.

Look what happened.

He had failed them as both a leader and friend.

His friends had put their trust in him and he had repaid them by leading them to their deaths.

At that thought, Jaune could no longer hold himself back any longer and broke down into tears.

"Oh god, why? After all you've done for me, why couldn't I do anything? I'm sorry ... I'm so so sorry. I've tried ... I've really tried but I just couldn't. It should have been me ... not you."

He continued to weep, all while he cursed himself for being so weak.

It was pointless. No matter how much he cried, Jaune knew that he could never change the fact that he was responsible for the disaster that had befallen his team.

The only thing that he could do now was to stay out from everything so as to not get in the way of the other hunters and huntresses.

Pathetic.

Useless.

Those were the only traits that Jaune Arc possessed.

* * *

-Author's Note-

Jaune's chapter is complete.

I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter of mine. It feels a bit rushed and messy in some parts.

And I'm not sure whether I got Pyrrha's character correct.

Anyways, if you readers think that I am making the Grimm a bit too strong here, remember that this is from Jaune's P.O.V. In his mind, he thinks that his fellow hunters and huntresses had been completely beaten during the battle at the courtyard. For those of you who was hoping to see a more detailed version of how Jaune's team were 'killed', it will be told in the next chapter from a different character's P.O.V.

And that character will be none other than Weiss.

If there is anything that you readers feel that you do not like about the way this fanfic is being written or have any questions to ask, feel free to mention them in your reviews.

Thank you for your reviews and for reading this story.


End file.
